Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Overweight, Obesity, And Natural Gullibility

We here in the United States have been indoctrinated by the food industry, aided by those loosely associated with that industry, the chefs, the TV cooking show personalities, and the profiteering charlatans who claim to know the secrets of vitamins, nutrition, and gastronomical health. The indoctrination to which I refer is the unquestioned absoluteness of the notion that the only food that should be eaten is food that has been prepared for consumption by enhancing that food's flavor or adding other elements to create additional pleasant flavors to the food being prepared.

This, to me, makes no sense. One of the most prevalent maladies in the United States is reported to be obesity. What is the most probable reason for this? I would guess that it is the ubiquitous practice of pleasure-seeking overeating. Why do obese people continue to eat more (much more) food than their bodies actually need, and often much more than they actually want to eat?

Why?

Because it tastes so damned good. That's why. If a little bit is good, then more has to be even better.

And yet Rachael Ray, the once perky (now porky) queen of the popular daytime cooking show continues to prepare tubs and overflowing platters of yummy, delicious, flavor-filled foods before your very eyes each weekday. And proclaims them to be healthy and nutritious.

And yet, Martha Stewart (no longer svelte and fetching) teaches you How To Bake by whipping up Cakes and Pastries loaded with tons of butter, cream, sugar, and wheat flower. And declares it to be luscious... and soooo good.

To be fair, all of the above showmen (show-people?) appear to be cooking for a huge crowd and, of course, expecting you, the viewer, to eat only a small, normal, sensible portion of the sumptuous spread they've shown you how to prepare and present to your friends and families.

And you will. You, being the strong-willed, intelligent, in-charge person that you are, you will treat yourself to only a tiny piece of that sweet, creamy cake with the butter creme frosting.

Sure, you will.

How much do I weigh, now, at age 74? My weight varies between 172 and 175 pounds.

How much should I weigh?

Well, I felt pretty well when I weighed 160 pounds, back in 2008, 2009, and 2010... and even better a few years back when I averaged 150 pounds for about ten years. And I felt GREAT during the early to middle 1980s, when I weighed between 145 to 150 pounds.

That's about as well as I can describe myself relative to body weight.

I would like to get my weight down to somewhere between 150 and 160 pounds. Maybe I will start recording my daily weight here on the blog. And perhaps a record of my daily food intake -- what I eat, and how much of it. And eschewing, of course, all added sugars, all wheat products, and as few fats as possible.

I'll think about it.

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TRIVIA

Astronauts are not allowed to eat beans before they go into space because passing wind in a spacesuit will damage it.

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HISTORICAL EVENT

Some 35 U.S. states declared it to be Bob Hope Day on this day, May 29, in 2003, when the iconic comedic actor and entertainer turned 100 years old. Hope died on July 27, 2003, less than two months after his 100th birthday celebration.

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WORD FOR TODAY

gastronomy
- the art or science of good eating
- culinary customs or style

Gastronomy is the art of food eating. It is also the study of food and culture, with a particular focus on gourmet cuisine. One who is well versed in gastronomy is called a gastronome, while a gastronomist is one who unites theory and practice in the study of gastronomy.

John F. Kennedy, often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his death in 1963.

After military service as commander of the Motor Torpedo Boats PT-109 and PT-59 during World War II in the South Pacific, Kennedy represented Massachusetts' 11th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1947 to 1953 as a Democrat. Thereafter, he served in the U.S. Senate from 1953 until 1960. Kennedy defeated Vice President and Republican candidate Richard Nixon in the 1960 U.S. presidential election.

At 43 years of age, he is the youngest to have been elected to the office, the second-youngest President (after Theodore Roosevelt), and the first person born in the 20th century to serve as president. A Catholic, Kennedy is the only non-Protestant president, and is the only president to have won a Pulitzer Prize. Events during his presidency included the Bay of Pigs Invasion, the Cuban Missile Crisis, the building of the Berlin Wall, the Space Race, the African-American Civil Rights Movement, and early stages of the Vietnam War.

Annette Bening is an American actress. Bening is a four-time Oscar nominee for her roles in The Grifters, American Beauty, Being Julia, and The Kids Are All Right, winning Golden Globe Awards for the latter two films.

Bob Hope was an English-born American comedian, vaudevillian, actor, singer, dancer, author, and athlete who appeared on Broadway, in vaudeville, movies, television, and on the radio. He was noted for his numerous United Service Organizations (USO) shows entertaining American military personnel; he made 57 tours for the USO between 1942 and 1988. Throughout his long career, he was honored for this work. In 1996, the U.S. Congress declared him the "first and only honorary veteran of the U.S. armed forces."

Over a career spanning 60 years (1934 to 1994), Hope appeared in over 70 films and shorts, including a series of "Road" movies co-starring Bing Crosby and Dorothy Lamour. In addition to hosting the Academy Awards fourteen times, he appeared in many stage productions and television roles, and was the author of fourteen books. He participated in the sports of golf and boxing, and owned a small stake in his hometown baseball team, the Cleveland Indians. He was married to his wife, fellow performer Dolores Hope for 69 years.